Structure · Built 1860
Dwight H. Dimmock House
Dwight H. Dimmock House
| Address | 49-51 Andover Rd |
| MACRIS ID | BIL.163 |
| Built | 1860 |
The Dwight H. Dimmock House is a large wooden house, now three apartments, on the southeast side of Andover Road at 49-51, a short walk east of the Billerica town center. Until the late 1800s this stretch of road was called Sheldon Lane, "the road leading easterly to the Depot Railroad Station". The house stands on three quarters of an acre, part of a lot of about two acres that John Baldwin sold in 1858.
On 1 May 1858 John Baldwin and his wife Clarissa sold Henry Sperry, a trader, for $450, the parcel on Sheldon Lane between the land occupied by Edwin Bowman and the land of Deacon Edward Wright, running back to the stone wall at the land of Henry Baldwin's widow. No building is mentioned, and none appears on the 1853 map. When Sperry sold the place on 8 March 1867 to Louisa S. Preston, a widow of Danvers, for $1,000, it came "with the buildings thereon standing" and carried a $1,500 mortgage held by the Orthodox Congregational Society, so Sperry built the house between 1858 and 1867. On 25 May 1867 Mrs. Preston sold it for $2,750 to Annie Gilman, wife of Gideon Gilman, to hold in her own right.
Annie Gilman died within a few years, leaving the house to her minor children. In August 1873 their father and guardian, Gideon Gilman, by then of Boston, sold it at auction for $4,050 to Edmund J. Baker and Horace E. Ware, trustees under the will of Hananiah Temple of Boston. The 1875 and 1889 maps mark it as the estate of H. Temple. In January 1895 the trustees released it to Temple's heirs, and that August and September Dwight H. Dimmock of Lowell bought it from them: nine-tenths from five of the heirs for $2,700, and the remaining tenths through the guardian of two minor heirs.
Dimock, whose name appears in every deed with a single m, made the house his home and enlarged the property. He bought the back land along Parker Lane from Frederick H. Parker in 1897 and 1898, and he sold the next lot to the east to Douglas E. Turner in 1897. He mortgaged the land several times between 1903 and 1921. He died without a will, and his wife Margaret also died before 1928. In the fall of 1928 their children, Bertha E. MacDonald, Ruth E. Shedd and Dwight L. Dimock, together with the guardian of a minor daughter, sold the four lots, about four acres "with the buildings thereon", to Frank L. and Alice M. Morrill.
The Morrills mortgaged the property in January 1929 to Adelaide L. Merry of Somerville. She foreclosed in August 1930 and in February 1931 sold it to Thomas J. McAnern. McAnern and his wife Margaret held it until 1955, when he had the house lot of three quarters of an acre surveyed by E. P. Simpson and sold it to Marian B. Sanborn and Edward J. Davis. That December they sold it to the family who owned it until 1986. Since then it has had private owners.
References
- MACRIS BIL.163
- Billerica assessor, 49-51 Andover Rd (parcel 51-61-0): three-family, 0.75 acre, plan 85-100A
Deed References
| Date | Type | Grantor | Grantee | Summary | Recorded |
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| May 12, 1858 | Warranty Deed | John Baldwin of Billerica (Clarissa P. Baldwin releasing dower) | Henry Sperry of Billerica | John Baldwin sells the bare lot on Sheldon Lane to Henry Sperry | 14/427 |
For $450, a parcel "on the road leading Easterly to the Depot Railroad Station on Sheldon Lane so called", from the corner of land occupied by Edwin Bowman east along the lane to land of Dea. Edward Wright, south by Wright to the stone wall between John Baldwin and the land of Henry Baldwin's widow, and west by the wall back to Bowman. No acreage and no buildings are named. Signed 1 May 1858, recorded 12 May 1858.
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| March 8, 1867 | Warranty Deed | Henry Sperry of Billerica, trader (Mehitable P. Sperry releasing dower and homestead) | Louisa S. Preston of Danvers, widow | Sperry sells the house to Louisa S. Preston | 54/497 |
For $1,000, "a certain piece or parcel of land situated in said Billerica with the buildings thereon standing", the same bounds on Sheldon lane between land occupied by Josiah Wilson and land of Mary E. Wright, "being the same premises conveyed to me by John Baldwin" in 1858, subject to "a mortgage of fifteen hundred dollars held by the Orthodox Congregational Society of Billerica". Signed and recorded 8 March 1867.
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| June 1, 1867 | Warranty Deed | Louisa S. Preston of Danvers, widow | Annie Gilman of Billerica, wife of Gideon Gilman, to her sole and separate use | Preston sells to Annie Gilman | 56/471 |
For $2,750, "a certain parcel of land situate in said Billerica with the buildings thereon" on the road to the Lowell Railroad station on Sheldon lane, by land of Judith Wilson, Mary E. Wright and the Baldwin wall, "being the same premises conveyed to me by Henry Sperry" (Book 54, Page 497), subject to the $1,500 mortgage, which the grantee assumes as part of the price.
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| October 8, 1873 | Quitclaim Deed | Gideon Gilman of Boston, widower of Annie Gilman | Edmund J. Baker and Horace E. Ware, trustees under the will of Hannaniah Temple of Boston | Gideon Gilman releases his interest to the Temple trustees | 96/546 |
For one dollar, a release of "a certain parcel of land with the buildings thereon, situated in Billerica" on Sheldon Lane, "containing two acres more or less and being the same land described in deed of Louisa S. Preston to Annie Gilman dated May 25, 1867" (Book 56, Page 471). Signed 24 September 1873.
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| October 8, 1873 | Guardian's Deed | Gideon Gilman, guardian of Franklin E., Horace K. and Hattie B. Gilman, minor children of Annie Gilman late of Billerica | Edmund J. Baker and Horace E. Ware, trustees under the will of Hannaniah Temple | guardian sells Annie Gilman's house at auction to the Temple trustees | 96/547 |
Under a license of the Probate Court of 22 July 1873, the children's house and two acres on Sheldon Lane, "with the buildings thereon", were sold at public auction on 18 August 1873 to the Temple trustees, the highest bidders, for $4,050. The same bounds and title as the Preston deed of 1867.
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| January 17, 1895 | Trustees' Deed | Horace E. Ware and Charles E. Stratton, trustees under the will of Hananiah Temple of Boston | His heirs Charles E. Temple, Mary F. Bryant, Ellen V. Pierce, Henry S. Rowe (a fifth each), John Temple and Eugene P. Temple (a tenth each) | Temple trustees distribute the house to the heirs | 261/266 |
Under the will proved in Suffolk on 30 June 1873, a release of four parcels, the first "a certain parcel of land with the buildings thereon situated in said Billerica" on the road to the Lowell Railroad station, "formerly called Sheldon Lane now Andover Street", by land formerly of Judith Wilson now of Johnson and land of Mary E. Wright, "containing about two acres", the land bought from the Gilmans in 1873.
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| September 26, 1895 | Guardian's Deed | Richard C. Humphreys of Boston, guardian of the minor Marion G. Temple | Dwight H. Dimmock of Lowell | Dimock takes a minor's release of another tenth | 268/221 |
Under a Middlesex Probate Court license of September 1895, a quitclaim for ten dollars of the minor's right, "especially any right ... by dower", in one undivided tenth of the Temple house and two acres on Sheldon Lane, the land held by the trustees of Hananiah Temple since 1873. Signed 20 September 1895.
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| September 26, 1895 | Guardian's Deed | Richard C. Humphreys of Boston, guardian of the minor Eugene P. Temple | Dwight H. Dimmock of Lowell | Dimock buys a tenth from a minor heir | 268/222 |
Under a license of the Suffolk Probate Court of 15 August 1895, the minor's "one undivided tenth part" of "a certain parcel of land with the buildings thereon situated in Billerica" on Sheldon Lane, about two acres, sold at private sale for $300. On the page before, the same guardian released a minor's dower right in another tenth to Dimock (Book 268, Page 221). Signed 20 September 1895.
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| September 26, 1895 | Warranty Deed | Charles E. Temple of Melrose, Mary F. Bryant of Billerica, Henry S. Rowe of Somerville, John Temple of Chelsea and Ellen V. Pierce of Boston, heirs of Hananiah Temple | Dwight H. Dimmock of Lowell | Temple heirs sell nine-tenths to Dwight H. Dimock | 268/223 |
For $2,700, "an undivided nine-tenths (9/10) part of a certain parcel of land with the buildings thereon situated in said Billerica" on Sheldon Lane at land formerly occupied by Edwin Bowman, now Lewis Johnson, and land of Mrs. Wright, "containing about two acres", the land the Temple trustees bought in 1873 and released to the heirs. Signed 24 August 1895; with the guardian's deed for the last tenth Dimock owned the whole.
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| October 9, 1928 | Guardian's Deed | Gladys E. Chapman of Chelmsford, guardian of Margaret L. Dimock of Billerica, a minor | Frank L. Morrill and Alice M. Morrill, husband and wife, of Billerica | guardian sells the minor heir's fourth to the Morrills | 768/596 |
Under a Middlesex Probate license of 18 September 1928, for $1,725, "an undivided fourth of four certain lots or parcels of land with the buildings thereon situated in the center of said Billerica on the southeasterly side of Andover Street, formerly called Sheldon Lane", the last fourth of the Dimock land. On the same page the Central Savings Bank discharged Dwight H. Dimock's mortgage of 1921 (Book 644, Page 496).
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| September 25, 1928 | Quitclaim Deed | Bertha E. MacDonald of Quincy, Ruth E. Shedd of Braintree and Dwight L. Dimock of Portsmouth, N.H., heirs of Dwight H. and Margaret Dimock | Frank L. Morrill and Alice M. Morrill, husband and wife, of Billerica | Dimock children sell three-fourths to Frank L. and Alice M. Morrill | 769/201 |
"Three undivided fourths of four certain lots or parcels of land with the buildings thereon situated in the center of said Billerica on the southeasterly side of Andover Street, formerly called Sheldon Lane", the first lot being part of what Dwight H. Dimock bought from the Temple heirs in 1895, the others his 1897 and 1898 purchases from Frederick H. Parker. The grantors held as heirs of their father "Dwight H. Dimock, late of said Billerica, deceased intestate" and their mother Margaret Dimock. Signed 25 September 1928.
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| January 7, 1929 | Mortgage | Frank L. Morrill and Alice M. Morrill, husband and wife, of Billerica | Adelaide L. Merry of Somerville | Morrill mortgage to Adelaide L. Merry | 772/439 |
Mortgage for $3,000 at six per cent of the four lots "with the buildings thereon situated in the center of said Billerica on the southeasterly side of Andover Street, formerly called Sheldon Lane", with the furnaces, ranges and fixtures; "for our title see deed from Bertha E. MacDonald et als to us dated September 22, 1928" (Book 769, Page 201) and a guardian's deed of 8 October 1928 (given as Book 769, Page 596; it is Book 768). Signed 4 January 1929; foreclosed in 1930.
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| August 28, 1930 | Foreclosure Deed | Adelaide L. Merry, mortgagee, by her attorney Louis A. Merry (mortgage of Frank L. and Alice M. Morrill) | Adelaide L. Merry | Adelaide L. Merry forecloses the Morrill mortgage | 793/488 |
Entry to foreclose on 19 August 1930 and a mortgagee's deed for $300 of the mortgage given her on 4 January 1929 by Frank L. Morrill and Alice M. Morrill (Book 772, Page 439): "four certain lots or parcels of land with the buildings thereon situated in the center of said Billerica on the Southeasterly side of Andover Street, formerly called Sheldon Lane", the first being the house lot between land of Slack and land conveyed "by Dwight H. Dimock, Trustee, to Douglas E. Turner" in 1897. Signed 22 August 1930.
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| February 4, 1931 | Quitclaim Deed | Adelaide L. Merry of Somerville, widow | Thomas J. McAnern of Somerville | Adelaide L. Merry sells the four lots to Thomas J. McAnern | 799/342 |
Four lots "with the buildings thereon situated in the center of Billerica ... on the Southeasterly side of Andover Street, formerly called Sheldon Lane", about four acres with a right of way through the lane to the Parker land, "being the same premises conveyed to me by foreclosure deed dated August 22, 1930" (Book 796, Page 488), subject to a Merrimack River Savings Bank mortgage of 1928 with $4,500 still due.
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| October 3, 1944 | Quitclaim Deed | Thomas J. McAnern of Billerica (Margaret M. McAnern releasing) | J. Marshall McAnern of Billerica | Thomas J. McAnern to J. Marshall McAnern (straw) | 1013/553 |
Four lots "with the buildings thereon situated in the center of Billerica ... on the Southeasterly side of Andover Street, formerly called Sheldon Lane", about four acres in all; the first lot is the house lot, between land formerly of Bowman, later Johnson, now Slack, and land conveyed by "Dwight H. Dimock, Trustee, to Douglas E. Turner" in 1897. Same as Adeline L. Merry's deed of 1931 (Book 799, Page 342). Signed 2 October 1944, a conveyance through a family member.
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| October 3, 1944 | Quitclaim Deed | J. Marshall McAnern of Billerica (Dorothy McAnern releasing) | Thomas J. McAnern and Margaret M. McAnern, husband and wife, tenants by the entirety | back to Thomas J. and Margaret M. McAnern | 1013/555 |
The same four lots "with the buildings thereon" on the southeasterly side of Andover Street, formerly Sheldon Lane, with a right of way through the lane to the Parker land, "being the same premises as conveyed to me by deed of Thomas J. McAnern of even date". Signed 2 October 1944, recorded 3 October 1944.
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| March 11, 1955 | Quitclaim Deed | Thomas J. McAnern of Andover, unmarried | Marian B. Sanborn and Edward J. Davis of Lowell, joint tenants | Thomas J. McAnern sells the house lot (plan 85-100A) | 1286/590 |
"The land in Billerica ... on the southerly side of Andover Street, with the buildings thereon": 196.11 feet on Andover Street, by land of C. H. McLaughlin, Houghton (partly by a stone wall) and Brigham, three quarters of an acre on a plan of his land by E. P. Simpson, 26 February 1955 (Plan Book 85, Plan 100A), "being a part of the premises conveyed to me and my late wife, Margaret M. McAnern, by J. Marshall McAnern" in 1944 (Book 1013, Page 555).
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| December 8, 1955 | Quitclaim Deed | Marian B. Sanborn and Edward J. Davis, of Billerica | A private couple of Billerica | Sanborn and Davis sell to the owners of 1955-1986 | 1319/247 |
"The land in said Billerica, with the buildings thereon, situated on the southeasterly side of Andover Street", the same three quarters of an acre (Plan Book 85, Plan 100A), "being the same premises to us conveyed by Thomas J. McAnern" (Book 1286, Page 590). Signed 6 December 1955. The same family owned the house until 1986 (Book 3461, Page 228); later sales (1998, 2009, 2016) were between private owners and a family realty trust.
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Recorded is Book/Page at the Middlesex North Registry of Deeds unless noted.